It’s been nearly a decade since the Miami Dolphins last won an AFC East title and it’s no wonder considering that team with Tom Brady is in the division. In fact, the Dolphins are the only team not from Massachusetts to win a division crown since 2002. There were some lean years in between, but the Fins put it together last season, posting their first winning season and playoff appearance since that 2008 division championship year.
AFC East Odds at BookMaker.eu
New England Patriots -1200
Miami Dolphins +800
Buffalo Bills +1500
New York Jets +7500
Why the Miami Dolphins Will Win the AFC East
The hope in south beach is that the Pats begin to fade after a dynastic run under Brady and Bill Belichick. Brady will be 40 years old by the time the season starts and the NFL isn’t a sport where men that age usually excel. The drop could be sudden, and the Dolphins are ready to pounce after putting together a breakthrough year under rookie coach Adam Gase last season.
As good as last season was it could have been better if not for the season-ending injury to Ryan Tannehill late in the year. Gase, who worked wonders with Jay Cutler in Chicago during his only year there, brought out the best in Tannehill, who looked like the franchise quarterback the organization though he would be.
For the first time in his career as a starter Tannehill didn’t finish the season. But statistically it was his finest year. He threw for 2,995 yards with 19 touchdowns and completed 67 percent of his throws. He also led the league with seven passes of 50 or more yards and averaged 7.7 yards per completion. The team resigned Kenny Stills to team with Jarvis Landry and also has Jay Ajayi back after he ran 1,272 yards.
After allowing nearly 400 yards per game, the Dolphins made some personnel changes on defense in hopes of challenging the Patriots. A big free agent haul landed Lawrence Timmons, Nate Allen and T.J. McDonald.
The Dolphins’ success will hinge on whether Tannehill returns fully from his knee injury. It also depends on beating the Pats in their head-to-head matchups. Miami split the season series in each of the three years prior to 2017, and will need to win at least one and most likely get a sweep to leapfrog the defending champs. It hasn’t happened since 2000, but the Dolphins are confident after least season’s success with Landry stating this offseason that they will sweep the Pats in 2017.
Why the Miami Dolphins Won't Win the AFC East
Brady. Simply put the Pats’ quarterback is the best and he led his team to another division and Super Bowl win last season. As long as Brady and Belichick are calling shots in Foxborough, the Pats are going to be tough to beat. There was an asterisk with that 2008 season since Brady went down with a knee injury in the opener. Behind Matt Cassell, the Pats tied the Dolphins at 11-5 that year but lost out on the tie-breaker for the division title.
With Brady missing the first four games of last season for his perceived involvement in the Deflategate scandal, the Pats went 3-1 and continued to roll through the regular season with another double-digit victory total. Even without Brady New England is able to field a team that wins ball games, and that doesn’t appear to change anytime soon.
And we don’t know how Tannehill is going to respond from his injury. He chose to rehab the ACL instead of undergoing surgery and he appears ready to play, but there’s nothing like getting into a game time setting. The Fins need Tannehill with Matt Moore as the only experienced backup. And we saw how things went last season Moore at the helm.
The Dolphins appear to be headed in the right direction under Gase and are ready to make further strides. They were a one-year wonder back in 2008 when they won the division in a tie-breaker over the Pats. Miami won just one game in 2007 and followed their division crown with a 7-9 clunker.
The 2017 club is set up for another successful run, but they need some help from the Pats to win the AFC East, and it’s hard to picture Brady and Co. letting go of the crown.
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